Judge — September 27, 1913 — page 3: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Judge's Revue of County Fairs This page satirizes the evolution of county fairs. The top panel shows traditional horse-drawn wagons and livestock at "the 'hitchin' ground," contrasting with the middle panel depicting rows of automobiles at "the 'parkin' place"—mocking how rapidly cars replaced horses in rural America. The large central illustration, captioned "The Prize Punkin'," depicts a massive pumpkin as the fair's centerpiece, surrounded by crowds. The bottom panel, "The Horse's rival," shows spectators viewing an airplane, suggesting aviation now competes with agricultural exhibits for fairgoers' attention. The overall satire critiques how modernization—automobiles and aviation—is displacing traditional agricultural culture at rural county fairs, reflecting early 20th-century anxieties about technological change in American countryside communities.